


Silahis

by WhatWentWrongWithWalter



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Don't Like Don't Read, Hinata as Apolaki, Interspecies Romance, Iwaizumi the siyokoy, Kags and Tsuki are goddesses, Kthxbai, Kuroo-Bakunawa, M/M, Oikawa Diwata, Other, Philippine mythology, Slow Build, The Author Regrets Nothing, Ushijima's a half-breed, babaylan/ prophet akaashi, datu war god bokuto, fem!Kageyama as Alunsina, fem!Tsuki as Haliya, sorry to non-Filipino speakers but I promise that this is reader-friendly, tananoya tiyanak haha, the kiyoyacheko team as manananggal, this is phil lit overload
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-02
Updated: 2016-01-15
Packaged: 2018-04-12 14:27:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4482788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhatWentWrongWithWalter/pseuds/WhatWentWrongWithWalter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prince Wakatoshi of the Ushijima clan longed for something new, something outside his mundane routines, something beyond the castle grounds. He had no idea that falling in love with a magical creature was the most thrilling adventure yet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Routines

**Author's Note:**

> A thought popped up: Oikawa is _too gorgeous_ to just be a grand king. So I thought I’d make him something magical, and put Ushijima on the seat of royalty instead of the usual. Maybe this could work? I don't know. This is my first HQ fan fic, and I have not much experience in writing in English for a year or so. I can't even tell if I will finish this or delete this later.
> 
> Why did I decide to go for Philippine mythology in this fic? Because some people think that the Philippines doesn’t have mythological creatures. I don't know what's up with that??? Rude. Well, fuck you, puta. Watch me as I inject it in my fan fic!

**Silahis**  
(Haikyuu!!: Ushijima Wakatoshi x Oikawa Tooru)

 

**Prologo**

The Oikawa family was a name feared for many centuries. Stories about their witchcraft and strange apparitions were passed by word of mouth. These rumours spread out, until every kingdom grew in fear of their bewitched clan. No one ventured too close to the Blue Forest, their territory, in fear that they would be cursed.

The fear and the rumours were passed on from generation to generation. Kings had changed, wars had ended, fields were asphalted into roads, but the Blue Forest remained virginal. Or so every mortal assumed.

What the people didn’t know was the fact that their fear was a big misunderstanding. The Oikawa’s were neither witches nor wizards, but indeed, they were magical. They were diwata folks: creatures of nature, guardians of the elements, two-faced fairies.

They appeared human by day, but would shift into their true form by midnight. The transformation was unique per diwata. In general, they had a close resemblance to fairy folk, or a body shaped by a certain element. Some diwata would spread out their leafy wings; others had their hair aflame. Rare species are a mix of two elements: muddy feet and watery fingers, or hair blossoming like spring but with wings shaped by fire. Even more rare, the dakilang diwata were the ones who gained control of every element. Myths would tell that were powerful enough to also control time and death.

And Oikawa Tooru had no idea what he was capable of.

* * *

**Kabanata 1:**  
**Daloy**

Sunlight seeped through an opened window. The rays caressed the deep purple bed sheets of Prince Ushijima. It meant to reach him, awaken him, if only the prince was on his bed.

It wasn’t out of the ordinary for Prince Ushijima to be fast asleep on the bedroom floor. It seemed that he was most comfortable there, naked and tangled in blankets; a loud snore ran out of parted lips.

Loud knocks from the door jolted him. His eyes slowly opened, squinting at the brightness of the room.  Soon, he noticed his nakedness. Again. It wasn’t every morning that he would wake up without his clothes, but he had gotten used to this, like it was an occasional norm.

His hand quickly wiped the side of his mouth, before groggily standing up. On the dresser, a neatly folded nightgown waited for him. A folded nightgown: always expected on mornings like these. After dressing, he dashed to open the door, and didn’t even bother to wear slippers.

“Prince Wakatoshi?”

A butler stood in his doorway. He scrutinized him up and down, despite the prince being the taller one between them. “Great heavens! Your bedrooms slippers! Do they no longer fit, your majesty? Are they soiled again, my prince? Goodness, you look awfully pale, too. Are you hungry, Prince Wakatoshi?”

“Don’t. Call me that. We’re not friends, butler.” His voice was calm, yet groggy and thick with insensitivity.

“Y-yes, my prince. As you wish.” The butler then cleared his throat. “Now, for today’s schedule: Wednesday, as usual, breakfast at the dinning hall. Then the maids will get you bathed at the West Wing tower. You shall get dressed for today’s visit in the afternoon, and then a little—”

“Visit? I’ll be going out?” he interrupted. Olive eyes grew round with a flint of hope.

“A, no, the Hinata family will be visiting. Exactly 2:30 in the afternoon, at the Garden of Black Roses. Their king brings their youngest daughter as a token for your upcoming 25th birthday in January. Both kings will still have to talk about your future, since the princess is still quite young. Today is the first day you and your possible queen-to-be will have the chance to get-together and hopefu—”

“No.” He slammed the door in mid-sentence.

“No? But, that's preposterous, my prince! It is scheduled! And your mother would be in rage if we don't stick to the time, your highness!”

“Leave me! I don't need your help, you dog!”

Retreating footsteps was the cue that made him jump back to his bed. He clutched his pillow and buried his face, buried a silent scream. He thought, if he reached his twenties, he’d finally be independent of all the rules and schedules in this place. Of routines. Or order. How incredibly wrong he was. How incredibly sick he became of this mundane life dressed in gold, fur, capes, crowns, high boots, times adorned with hectic schedules.

Sometimes he wished he was born different. Anything, but a prince. Even as a hideous beast, he wouldn’t mind. Just as long as he could run away from here, where the walls were too high, and the short chains were tied to his neck and feet.

It was no fun—especially this talk about marriage. Not that he thought he was “too young,” but he didn’t believe in it. Simply put, he wasn't interested. For someone who never left home, who never knew how to talk to other people without being insensitive, or intimidating others. Who never even had any friends besides his own shadow. Who never connected with anyone in particular.

How can one believe in happy endings when the protagonist was deprived of sadness, loss, or grief? Life was “too perfect” and “too balanced” inside the castle grounds. This made him hunger for something else: freedom. Adventure. The care-free life. Risk. Danger. Could love compete to that, he wondered.

For that, he was mocked and insulted. The Ushijima clan called him selfish, threatening him as the cause of suffering of all those princesses that needed to be saved from their kingdom’s poverty. An occasional pang of guilt clawed at him (sometimes), but he decided that _he_ needed saving, too. A safe haven from all this whirlwind of perfection.

He tossed in his bed, where the sun finally caught his lashes. The prince blinked in defense. Immediately, he stood up to draw the curtains. His dark eyes glimpsed at the blue canopy of a yonder forest.

* * *

Kristala, the giant serpent, whistled shrilly: a sign of dawn.

The first few notes of the serpent’s song traversed through the humid air. The song reached Oikawa Tooru. His ears tingled in sweet melody. The diwata yawned, a couple of stardust fell out of his wide mouth. He rubbed his eyes, stretched up his arms and legs. Being alone in the nest gave him all the space he needed.

“Good morning, world!” The forest resonated with his saccharine voice before falling into silence. Kristala was now quiet. And so was the Blue Forest. 

Oikawa stretched up the tree, plucked a handful of leaves. With a flourish of his hand, magic dust sewed the leaves to make him clothes. It wrapped around his waist, and reached down his knees—such lovely new trousers!  

 _Too bad no one else can see this gorgeous thing_ , he thought. _And no one ever will._

Oikawa jumped out of his nest. He dived down the branch of the Balete tree, laughing boisterously for no reason. Just before he crashed to the ground, white wings spread out and lifted himself. Although, as a diwata, he wouldn't die of that. Diwata folks are hard to exterminate. Typical accidents weren’t strong forces that could take any magic folk's life. They were eradicated by the same force, the same circle of magical entities.

He sighed and smiled up at the sky.

“Time to hunt!” he shouted, flying straight towards the sun.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last edited as of 1 November 2015.


	2. Runaways

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I used local colour for this chapter, so I put a glossary at the End Notes. I hope it's not a bother. I tried to put context clues, without sounding redundant.
> 
> Also, a little background: someone circulated a half-Filipino Iwaizumi headcanon on Tumblr, and that headcanon stands true in this fic. Iwazumi is half-Filipino, and the "fish talk" Oikawa refers to is Filipino (not to be taken offensively). 
> 
> Oikawa's song is a short Filipino poem that I made in a spur of the moment. Sadly, I couldn't translate it with the exact rhyme in English, so I left it literal. It sounds so hella poetic and cheezy without a fault.

**Kabanata 2**  
**Takas**

King Ushijima had been shouting across his son’s door. His rapid knocks were ineffective. No response. Nothing stirred when he pressed an ear on the giant door. He threatened him with the queen, who was even nastier. She was a real terror; the quiet one with raging winds.

When half an hour passed, he did summon his wife. She scowled, commenting that he only remembered her existence when he needed her most. The truth made her husband hang his head in shame.

“Step aside.”  

Partially lifting the skirts of her gown, she delivered a thunderous kick at the door. A clean knockdown. Its hinges blew right from the post. The golden doorknobs cracked. The Queen patted her velvet gown from the dust and crinkles.

The royal couple stepped inside a tidy room. The curtain from the opened window waved at them.

* * *

Oikawa’s stomach grumbled in hunger. He groaned in complain. Why was a diwata’s such stomach a bottomless pit?

Or was it because he kept using magic? Did it really eat that much energy, like his mother said? Maybe, but he shrugged off the thought.

It was unavoidable to stop fiddling around. Magic was topnotch entertainment to a lonely creature like him. It wasn't like the old times when he had other friends to play tag or hide-and-seek with. No friends to prank, to tease, to laugh, or cry with. (For his other non-diwata friends, and very few friends they were, usually went with their own kin.)

Magic then became a substitute. It had become a pastime. He turned shrubs into trees, trees into vines, cacti into flowers. Fruits became ripe in a single snap. The diwata sometimes command insects to stay away or read animal’s mind.

Sometimes, he used magic unintentionally. A swirl of his finger in a muddy puddle, the Blue Forest would be filled with a thousand floating bubbles. A sneeze could send down an army of heaven’s teardrops. Even his saliva was magical, as it could heal cuts, bruises, and broken bones from any bad fall. (Flying skills? No, this diwata’s an expert at falling. Only his ego soared that high.)

This was his personal joy in this world. But it could get pretty lonely.

* * *

_Damn, these shorts are too puffy!_ Prince Ushijima scratched at the garter that wrung around his thighs. In his hurry to jump out of the window, choice of clothes didn’t matter that moment. It was only now that he felt the pangs of stupidity claw right through.

An urge to go back dragged his feet, making them heavier with each step. But no, he wasn’t going to turn around, not even to look back if someone was following clandestinely. The prince, cloaked in a torn violet blanket, had run as far as the Tower of the Swans. He had no memory why the blanket was under his bed, but was thankful for it.

Black spiked gates rose in the distance. His heart pounded with excitement. Freedom tasted close. He walked faster. To cross the Garden of Violets should be easy.

With his head down, he felt his way, trying his best to ignore the scorching heat of the ground. It was too late to regret not wearing slippers or boots. Or the ridiculously poofy shorts. 

Two guards did their routine march at the gates. They noticed the man in torn clothing and with no shoes. Thinking this was a beggar, they eagerly unlocked the gates. Guards had foul attitudes, and was usually unfair to the poor, despite them being unarmed.

“Halt!”

The shrill voice sent a shiver down Ushijima’s spine. He could hear many footsteps, but the faint clicking of heels was the most terrifying sound. He didn’t have to look back to meet his mother’s face, along with other assistants, helpers, maids, and his annoying personal butler.

“Don’t let him get away!”

“It’s the prince!”

“Lock the gates! Immediately!”

Different voices melded, all pleading the two guards to keep him out. This cued Ushijima to unleash the raggedy disguise. No point in hiding, but he wasn’t going to give up now. He dashed towards the guards and attacked them. A swift fist crashed right on the stomach of the first guard. Knees folded, then a muted thud. The other one drew out his gun, but the queen called out, “Don’t you dare, you asshole!”

Ushijima saw this advantage. He grabbed the guard by the hand, then kicked at the other’s crotch. Now two lame uniformed men howled in pain. The prince pushed the heavy gates open.

“STOP!”

The queen ripped out a scream that shook the entire the garden. It sent a wave, intensely loud and strong, the metal gates creaked and bent. In a split second, the bars collapsed in a dusty pile. The beaten guards and everyone pursuing the stowaway prince drew their eyes at her. Shock and astonishment, clearly written on their faces. The queen clapped her mouth. The silence dragged without an explanation.

All eyes were glued to the queen. Prince Ushijima took this chance to slip away, unseen.

* * *

There were days when Oikawa would wander all over Blue Forest, until he decided to visit a friend. There were other creatures living within Blue Forest, or close by. His favourite friend, Iwazumi the siyokoy, was always an option.

There was a clearing in the Blue Forest, where merfolk lived in peace. Away from prying human eyes. Away from mischievous mortals. To call them up on the surface, one had to sing through a conch. A blue conch with white spots was similar to what humans call a telephone. One could say, it was a telephone that worked underwater. The song would blast down their kingdom, like a calling from a general sound system.

This was why the conch was usually buried. Merfolk didn’t like being disturbed. Their kind was always busy with piyesta celebrations, almost every single day. A piyesta, the traditional gathering of their race for friendly games. Oikawa had no idea what kind of fish games they were, and he never bothered to ask. He wasn't fond of the waters anyway.

But Oikawa was bored to death, and his intention to disturb Iwaizumi was inevitable. Luckily, the diwata and merforlk species had a good history together, otherwise, Oikawa could possibly be banned to make friends with any siyokoy or sirena.

The diwata marked the conch in between a green and purple tree, so it was easy to dig it up again (rather, to lift it with magic again). He put the opening of the conch close to his lips, and sang:

 _“Dinggin mo,_  
_panalangin ng puso,_  
_na sana’y mapansin,_  
_at pagbigyan muli, Iwaizumi.”_

(Please hear my heart's prayer, that wishes to be noticed for yet another chance, Iwaizumi.)

In less than a minute, Iwaizumi the siyokoy surfaced the gleaming pink waters. Oikawa was always amazed by the hourly shift of the merfolk’s waters, like the waters were painted in all the colours of the rainbow.

“Iwa-chan!” the diwata beamed. But the siyokoy’s face was as hard as a rock, displeased, with brows angled in annoyance.

“This better be good, Ass-kawa. It's bangus piyesta today.”

“Bangus piye-wha?” he scrunched up his nose in confusion. For years, he still hasn’t grown accustomed with Iwaizumi's fish talk. 

“You wouldn’t understand. Not a land or air elemental would.”

“Hmph,” Oikawa crossed his arms over his bare chest. “I can be a water elemental, too. I just… I’m just more comfortable up here.” When the siyokoy snorted, he added, “Besides, flying is fun. Not a siyokoy like you would understand.” He stuck out his tongue.

“So, what do you want from me?” A sigh of defeat, tolerance, and slight peevishness.

“Tears. Mermaid tears, Iwa-chan. I need Luha ng Sirena.”

* * *

The Blue Forest didn’t look as close as it did from his bedroom’s window. His feet stared to ache, but he didn’t stop. Couldn't. No. Must carry on. Ignore fatigue. Freedom.

Time was running along with him. But, unlike time, he was worn out, breathless from running. He kept on pulling down his shorts, yet it was futile. And it itched terribly.

It could only be a matter of seconds before he was caught. Even if the towers shrunk into a dot in the distance behind, he didn’t want to slow down. Adrenaline pushed him to outrace time. What a fool. 

The sun hung low on the horizon when he entered the Blue Forest. The trees around seemed to block him from entering. Prince Ushijima had a hard time squeezing between the narrow spaces of the trunk. There were vines everywhere, low branches reached out his face, it almost felt like the trees wanted to attack him. But it was all in his head, simply illusory.

The wind moaned. Something dashed behind him. Or so he thought. He asked aloud, “Hello?” But of course, who could trod on this forbidden land? Surely, he was alone.

A deep growl caused Ushijima to hide behind a tree. He looked up to one of its higher branches. Perhaps climbing was a good idea. Even if he never tried to climb, he struggled to get himself up, away from the possible dangers. Luckily he was strong, quite agile, and soon he was ten feet high. As he continued to elevate himself, a wave of joy washed him. This was perilous, yet it didn’t scare him. Thrill ricocheted his spirits as he ascended, branch by branch.

What scared him was the sight of a man, hanging upside-down, his knees buckled on a branch. It was Oikawa, swinging from his branch, with a sweet yellow mango on his hand, eating as carefree as ever.

The sight of him stupefied Prince Ushijima. He lost his balance and began to fall from the Balete tree.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Glossary:  
> > siyokoy- merman  
> > sirena- mermaid
> 
> (There is no collective term for 'merfolk,' but the term 'taga-dagat' could've work, too. Yet I chose not to use 'taga-dagat' because it's as a collective noun for all creatures under the sea. To use it in the context of the fic would imply that only merfolks are the existent creatures around under the sea. Which isn't true. There are so many more, but no need for me to catalog right now. I'll probably hint in the future.)
> 
> > bangus- milkfish  
> > luha ng sirena- mermaid's tears (yup, 'luha' is tears; 'ng' is a linking verb)  
> > piyesta- fiesta/ feast  
> > Balete tree- it's a kind of tree here;usually associated with magical/ supernatural things, which is a great setting for magical beings, yano.


	3. Lost

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First week of school has passed on to the second. Reports. Quizzes. Org. Writing. Deadlines. Work at the library, too. I am back in hell. So this chapter is quite short. 
> 
>  
> 
> _IMPORTANT NOTE: If you read the tags of this fic, I changed Kuroo's character. Instead of 'Kuroo the higante,' I changed it to 'Kuroo-Bakunawa.'_

**Kabanata 3**  
**Ligaw**

“Ay, what did you fucking do this time, Ass-kawa?”

“Chillax, Iwa-chan! I think he's unconscious, but not dead. Sleeping, probably."

"That thing fucking away from me!"

"God, Iwa-chan, such temper... No wonder you scare all the sirena away with your volcanic attitu—Ow! Ow! Shit, that hurts! Stop pinching meeee!”

“Now, answer me, gago. What is that mortal doing in here?”

“Come on, as if a mortal would actually go inside here—in this forest—on purpose? It looks lost to me. I think it was trying to climb up my tree? I don’t know. But, I probably knocked this one out with my charming looks!”

“I don’t care. Put that thing back where it came from—away from the likes of us. Mortals are evil shit, you know.”

“But I don’t know where this thing came from, idiot? It fell off my tree, and now, it's not moving. Doesn’t look dead, but I don’t know what to do, so I came to you…”

“This is you lame excuse to get more Luha ng Sirena, ano?”

“No, it’s not what you think! Iwa-chan, c’mon, let’s help this poor creature!”

“And why should we? Why should we help those who driven us away from this world in the first place? You think you’ll be treated like a king, if you suddenly woke up in a mortal’s castle? Gago! Are you forgetting _your_ history, Oikawa? You know what those mortals—”

“Stop. Don’t.”

“See. Now ask yourself. Do you still want to help the enemy?”

"Those mortals cheated! They used the help of—"

"I know. You know. So stop. I don't want to help this being. I'm done. Tapos."

“Wait! Iwa-chan! Come back! Think about this: this fell off my tree. The Balete tree is as high as heaven! Do you think an _ordinary_ mortal could climb that high? Do you think an ordinary mortal could even reach that high, and then fall to the ground, and manage to be somewhat breathing? Do you think this one's  _simply_ a mortal?”

“What? Ano? What are you getting at. It sounds fishy…”

“No human would! Heck, no human could! So what if… what if this human is in a disguise? What if… what if this one's like us!”

“Gago.”

“I’m not stupid! I don’t think it is! It’s possible! Look at this creature! Such height, such muscles, such…”

“Are you suggesting someone from the higante folk? Or a kapre?”

“I don’t know, I can’t tell… But, it doesn’t smell like tobacco smoke, so I doubt he’s kapre.”

“Look, this one's obviously human. A harmless mortal. That’s all. Just, go home. Leave it be. Let the other creatures devour it.”

“A harmless mortal who climbed 50 feet high. Why, yes! Sounds like your everyday human!"

“Tangina, fine. Let’s go see Bakunawa, if that pleases you!”

“Ha? Bakunawa, that serpent-dragon? What for? He doesn't like being awaken, idiot.”

“Well, what more a perfect creature than Kuroo-Bakunawa, guardian of dreams? I think we can trust him. If your "friend" here is really just asleep. And he better be.”

"And if not?"

"Not my problem. One less human in the world, I guess. Not a bad loss."

* * *

The sound of silence. The sight of darkness. The numbness of the cold. It all wrapped Prince Ushijima, like a blanket coated from his shoulders down to his toes. He could feel himself moving. Being dragged. Carried away to some place. It grew warmer and warmer.

And darker. It was impossible to see. The world smiled with black teeth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >gago- stupid/ imbecile/ brainless/ idiot (This is a "bad word" if you use this with an angry tone, but this can also be used affectionately for close friends.)
> 
> >Luha ng Sirena- mermaid's tears (This phrase will keep recurring. In the story, I'm using mermaid's tears as some sort of healing potion. So yes, it will be important in the later chapters, and will be reappear once in a while.)
> 
> >Tapos- done, finished, end.
> 
> >"Ay, Bathala" is an expression that's close to "Oh god." Bathala is one of the gods in the Philippines, when we used to be a polytheistic nation. Spain colonised us, and erased Bathala, replaced it with their god.  
> To be honest, the Spaniards of 1521 erased our history, and America helped them in 1900's, and Japan bombed up by WW2. This is why we have "no literature left." Most because they were burned and considered works of the devil, because of course, Bathala is a devil, because he's not the Roman Catholic's god. (Whoah, sorry for the rant.)
> 
> >"Ano?" is a fave expression, we probs even use this as filler word like "um" and "er" and "uh." But this literally means "What?"
> 
> >higante- violent giants who enjoy fighting and bloodshed
> 
> >kapre- a giant who usually smokes tobacco, gambles, and drinks heavy liquors; more magical than higante folk and less brutal/ violent
> 
> >"Tangina" is the "fuck you" expression for us Filipinos. And most of us love saying this, I am guilty of this. The complete phrase is "putang ina mo," and although its literal translation is "your mother's a whore," this just evolved into being "fuck you." As a matter of fact, maybe not all Filipinos even know what's the literal translation of "fuck you." (I do, but I'm not telling. My potty mouth has reached it's limits today. HAHA.)
> 
> >Bakunawa- the sea serpent/ dragon who hibernates or lives underwater. It lives in a cave, to guard the evil spirits trapped under the big rocks. The Bakunawa is also rumoured to cause the eclipse, because eclipses look like a dragon eating the moon. Most of the time, it is asleep in it's cave. Merfolks are usually reluctant to wake it up for special favours, but they're on good terms at least.


	4. Bakunawa

**Kabanata 4**  
**Bakunawa**

The Sunset Path, a trail of glowing red rocks, blazed on the sea floor, like little red stars stuck underwater; a path to inferno. This was the only way to the bakunawa’s home. The Bakunawa Lair was hidden in the bottom of the sea, at the end of Sunset Path. Only dikya (jellyfishes) knew the way. They were responsible for the path’s reddish glow.

Oikawa and Iwaizumi had a longer route to swim, coming from merfolk’s kingdom. The clearing and the sea was separated by an hour long journey. Luckily, they had passed by a group of dikya to inquire for directions. They were lead to a shortcut.

Soon, they found the first rock to Sunset Path. Their pacing progressed. As they advanced, the huge red cave loomed in the distance. Closer and closer, they could now see odd black markings unfurled all about, etched on the cave’s surface.

Now, the diwata and the siyokoy stood in front of the huge red mouth. Uncertainty crept. Red light diminished at the cave’s throat.

“This is it,” Iwaizumi huffed.

“Well, we’re not stopping here, right?” Oikawa gulped, hoping it would drown his nervousness. “Quick! Before the spell fades on him.”

They held Ushijima with the blanket. It was wrapped around his waist, and they dragged him, holding out the hem. 

* * *

Before diving into the clearing, Oikawa had cast a spell on the sleeping mortal. He placed his hands on Ushijima’s broad chest. A white glow from his fingertips spread out, draining all the colour out of the mortal’s face.

“What did you do, gago?” Iwaizumi looked distrustfully.

“Relax, it’s harmless. Just to help him breathe underwater.”

“And what about you? Aren’t you going to transform into your water elemental form?”

“Hang a sec, I can’t—” he fumbled for his trouser’s pockets. Somewhere, his pockets held the four important stones of a diwata. Some called them gems, but they weren’t fancy stones. They were small, flat, colour-coded stones that diwata had to swallow to transform.

Yet before he could gulp the Dark Blue Stone (to transfigure into his water elemental form), he had to flesh off a part of his White Stone’s powers, to help Ushijima breathe underwater. Apparently, Oikawa was no Dakilang Diwata. He wasn’t a master, not yet. He could only take one at a time.

The White Stone drained Ushijima’s skin colour into a feint white. Once his true colours crept back, Oikawa would know, it was time for him to haul up on land.

It was the same reason why he kept on glancing at the unconscious mortal. He constantly checked if his face showed any signs of change. Unfortunately, the cave glowed red, even on the inside. He couldn’t exactly tell.

Iwaizumi already noticed his quick glances, but thanked him for ignoring it. Oikawa, embarrassed, kicked his legs faster. The sooner they find Kuroo, the better. Before the spell wore off.

“Hello?” Oikawa asked out loud. The mundane walls seemed to shrink.

“What are you doing?” Iwaizumi shot him an angry glance.

“Calling him out, silly!”

“Gago, what if he’s in dragon form? You think we can outrun him, if he devours us?”

 “Oho ho ho, what do we have here?”

They heard a voice behind them. To their surprise, Kuroo-Bakunawa, hung up on a stalactite. His signature grin was wide on his dark face. He wasn’t in bakunawa form yet. No scales, no claws, no dragon’s tail, no wings, but his smile and red eyes flared up from his youthful face.

“I dreamt I would be disrupted today,” he explained, jumping off from above. “Seems like I’m correct.” He inched closer to his visitors. A cloud of intimidating aura floated around his presence.

“So, bet you also dreamed what we have to say, e?” Oikawa sassed out. He wasn’t very fond of the know-it-all bakunawa.

“Oy, show some respect. This is his place after all.” Iwaizumi sharply whispered, but his scales begun to shed a little. A sign of fear for fish-folks. The siyokoy didn’t really like the bakunawa’s company either.

Kuroo laughed and brushed it off. “No, no. I don’t know why you’re here. I just dreamt a diwata would come down here. And since there are really no other diwata anymore, besides you…”

“Shut the fuck up!”

“I wasn’t expecting your siyokoy friend, nor your human bait.” he continued. “But that’s a nice surprise. Thank you for your sacrifice.”

“Hey, no, this thing’s not bait! It’s not for you, idiot! I need him awake. And I need you to help him wake up.”

“What’s in it for me if I help you?” Kuroo raised a brow, as if challenging him.

“Nothing!” Oikawa sliced the words on the hot air. “You’re going to help us bring his life back from sleep!”

“Will I?” He smirked again.

The diwata’s fist flew to Kuroo’s face, but the bakunawa was even faster. He grabbed it in the nick of time. He smiled knowingly and said, “Can’t take a joke, e?”

This calmed Oikawa and he withdrew his hand. A little embarrassment bubbled up in his chest.

“Why do you want to save him?”

The question caught Oikawa off-guard. He could also feel Iwaizumi’s eyes on him. The two anticipated for an answer. Yet he didn’t want to admit the truth yet.

“Just because,” he arrogantly answered.

“Fair enough. I’ll see what I can do.”

Kuroo moved closer to the wall. He drew on the red-hot surface, similar to the odd markings on his cave. The wall cracked open beneath his fingers. From the opening, it split, enough for a single body to fit through.

“I need him alone,” he pointed to Ushijima, who was still pale. The spell hadn’t worn off yet. “Extracting dreams isn't that hard a process, but considering that our subject isn’t magical, it might have a whole other structure. It may take longer than usual. I’m not too sure. I haven't interacted with a human yet. So, do you mind if you wait for us by the entrance?"

Oikawa scrunched his nose in irritation but complied when Iwaizumi put a hand on his shoulder. They swam out and waited.

Waited, ‘til the sea was dimmed with a beautiful sunset. Waited, ‘til the occasional dikya passed by the entrance. The night slowly swallowed the sea. In their boredom, the two suddenly found themselves counting dikya.

* * *

The Dreamsphere was the room beyond the crack on Kuroo's wall. It was cramped and cluttered with a lot of things. Towers and towers of boxes, marked with baybayin alphabet, occupied all four sides of the room. A white table, situated at the center, seemed to take up most of the space. There was a giant screen plastered on one wall. Bottles and phials of all sizes neatly lined up in a transparent cabinet on the wall. A collection of knives, rattan sticks, spears, machetes and bolos were spread out on a long counter, opposite to the the cabinet. Stacks of notebooks, yellowing books, and paper—all water-resistant in feature—littered the floor.

Kuroo laid the human on the table. He opened on of the boxes, hauled out his special equipment: a big and shiny black microscope, with a long cord attached to the base. It was a connector for the screen, to be plugged at the side of the giant monitor. It was easier to look at dreams from the screen than through the eyepiece lens. For this microscope was beyond looking at bacterial things, but rather, looking at abstract things. A dreamscope. And dreams were as abstract as emotions.

The Bakunawa placed the dreamscope on the table. He adjusted the arm, making enough space to lie down Ushijima’s head on the stage of the dreamscope. (Kuroo wasn’t exactly sure on how to look at dreams of non-magical creatures, but it should be the same thing, right?) A press on the power button, and the monitor woke up with a blue face. A steady red button glowed at the upper-left hand corner.

He peered through the eyepiece. The ocular showed a mess of dark brown hair. He adjusted the knobs, refocusing and refocusing until the brown hairs melded into a blue—as blue as the monitor. Kuroo lift his eyes to check out the screen. A static channel was all he could see, but he knew this was good progress. They were getting somewhere.

Then the red button began to blink. It was starting to record, extracting Ushijima's latest dream.

"So you're still alive. Huh."

Kuroo closely watched the recording. There was a giant shadow and a little boy. There was screaming and running. It was a blur, but the bakunawa had an eye for detail. He knew what he saw, there was no mistaking it— it was the tragedy of the century. It happened twenty years ago.

His eyes nearly popped out in horror. Why was he watching this all over again? But what he couldn't believe was the fact he relived the horror though a mortal's dream.

It was a historical tragedy for magic-folks, and a historical victory for mortals.

* * *

“Fifty… Shit, I lost count…” Oikawa was sprawled on a flat boulder, next to the entrance. 

“Fifty-six,” he corrected. Iwaizumi was seated below, back leaning on the same boulder.

“Sure?”

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and sarcastically said, “Ay, no, not really. Of course, I meant one hundred and seven!”

Oikawa groaned in annoyance. “Do you think we’ll reach a hundred?”

“Hmm. Maybe? Who knows.”

The diwata abruptly scrambled to sit up, but slid down the boulder. He landed on the send, almost knocking down Iwaizumi.

“Shit, do you think he fell asleep and probably ditched us?”

“That’s not very nice of you to say, Oikawa.”

Kuroo’s voice popped up behind them. The two was startled, even more surprised to see black scales on Kuroo’s face. They both realized that night closely fell upon them, and his transformation started to evolve. A drop of nervousness exploded in them. It would be dangerous to stick around when Kuroo was in his true form.

“Your friend… he's… ” but he couldn't venture forward. “You should be careful.” His red eyes bore a hole on Oikawa.

“Me? Huh, why?”

“He has dreams about… a certain death. A mass grave. An emblem with an eagle.”

"Shit, no." The word 'eagle' made Oikawa shiver.  

“The good news is, he _is_ still alive, just asleep. With a horrible dream.”

“He’s alive?” Oikawa whispered, a spark of hope fluttered in his chest. That was all he needed to hear right now. “Will he wake up soon, Kuroo?”

The Bakunawa frowned and scratched his messy black hair. “About that… you need," and he pointed at Iwaizumi. "Any merman or mermaid's voice could do the trick to wake him."

“A, that's easy. I can do that myself." Iwaizumi straightened up, chest puffed out.

"Alright, good. And then, he needs you." Kuroo placed a hand on the diwata's shoulder. "To make him forget."

"Forget?!" Oikawa was flabbergasted. "You mean, I have to kiss him? So he could forget?" A diwata's kiss could wipe out the entire memory of the receiver, as the myths went.

"He has to forget about our world, of course!" Iwaizumi was quick to explain. "We can't have a mortal running around screaming about siyokoy, sirena, diwata! They'll hunt us down again! Then they'll burn what we have when we're all asleep by day! Do you want another massacre?"

Oikawa bit his lower lip, trying to fight back from saying anything else. He planned to keep the mortal for personal reasons. But Iwaizumi was right, and the all-knowing bakunawa agreed. It was time to let go, even before he could hold on.

"However, do make sure you've already captured the Adarna. When you kiss him, I mean."

"The Adarna?" Oikawa raised a brow in confusion.

“Yes, that colourful bird that changes feathers and sings beautifully. It’s song can lead him out of Blue Forest, back to his world. However, it’s not easy to catch one…”

“O, right! The Adarna knows the way out of Blue Forest!” Iwaizumi butted in.

“Well, I know someone who could help you search for the Adarna, but she’ll only recognize me in my dragon form. Are you willing to wait until the next eclipse?”

“No,” the both of them spat.

“Of course, you don’t. That would take years. But, however, I do have another friend. He lives on Bungo Isla. His name's Datu Bokuto. He has caught the Adarna once. Let it free after curing his babaylan lover.”

The diwata and the siyokoy looked at each other. They nodded in approval.

“How do we find the datu?”

Kuroo smirked. “That, I can take care of.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I had a horrible writer's block, but look. A long chapter. I hope it's interesting enough to get readers hooked? Because I feel like I'm the only one who appreciates this, I really don't know, I'm sad. Help.
> 
> So, new concepts here:
> 
> >baybayin alphabet: So, did you know, Filipinos used to have their own system of writing? But, sadly, it was burned by the Spanish colonizers because they thought anything not created by their god, was created by the devil himself. So, yeah, our own writing system and culture was burned by white men. Sad. (You can check out the baybayin alphabet online, it's real cool.)
> 
> > Adarna- like what it says, it is a magical bird that changes colour. It's magic powers includes its awesome voice that could put anyone to sleep. And it's got magical poop, too. I swear, if it shits on you, your turn into stone. I don't know if the Adarna story is translated in English, but it was written in korido (a kind of poem that follows a specific rhyme, syllable, and stanza).
> 
> >Datu- this means chief (Datu Bokuto is a war god in here, woooo~)


	5. Bungo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehc95Tw7qwY) that Iwaizumi sings. It's an English song by a local band (Eraserheads), entitled, "With a Smile."

**Kabanata 5**  
**Bungo**

A bakunawa— scales, claws, wings and all— weren't the same harmless souls as their daytime disguise. The total transformation kept no memory of who they were, or who they used to be. They only knew their unfathomable hunger for the moon.

“Once my wings rip off from my back, grab it and hoist yourselves— Aaaaa!” Kuroo was down on his knees, howling in pain. “I’m sorry, my scales— oww— probably looks gross, I know. It burns when my skin peels off for them. But. Aaaaa! Quick, siyokoy, sing! It’ll wake him up just in time we break out of the water! And you, diwata, carry him tightly.”

Iwaizumi opened his mouth, and a song flowed out:

 _“In a world where everybody_ _hates a happy ending story_  
_It’s a wonder love can make the world go round."_

Oikawa slung Ushijima on his back. The prince was slumped over him, big arms thrown over his shoulders, loosely hanging by the diwata's neck. The diwata bucked his arms on Ushijima's limp legs, locking those bruised legs on his waist. Oikawa looked like a mother who still carried his full-grown son for a piggy-back ride. He turned around at Iwaizumi. The siyokoy had his eyes closed, still singing.

 _"But don’t let it bring you down,_  
_and turn your face into a frown._  
_You’ll get along with a little prayer and a song.”_

Kuroo’s arms popped up. Hands ripped into claws. Skin ripped into shiny black scales, up until his slithering tail. His face protruded; nose turned into a long snout; lips curved into a nasty snarl with long, sharp teeth.  

“More, Iwa-chan! Sing more!”

 _“Lift your head, baby, don’t be scared_  
_Of the things that could go wrong along the way...”_

Wings sprouted from his back: giant, black, devilish. Oikawa grappled them with one hand, another was gripped to the mortal. He pushed himself up, tried to get himself all set before the flight. 

_“You’ll get by with a smile. Now it’s time to kiss away those tears goodbye!”_

Without warning, the serpent-dragon stretched it's jupiterian wings, then seized for the sky. 

Speedy as a bullet, Kuroo and his riders slipped out of the ocean. (For Oikawa, it felt like riding lighting itself.) The wind lashed at them, cool and sharp. A bright moon smiled from the distance. Above the ocean, the bakunawa was now calmer, as wings flapped slow and rhythmic. 

The diwata looked back, and met Ushijima's still-sleeping face. Colour now reappeared on him.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Hey, wake up!"

But the human didn't stir. He shrugged it off and continued to gaze out for Bungo Isla.

Bungo Isla was easy to spot from above. A mesh of silvery trees in the shape of a skull from afar. It took the shape of it's name. Oikawa kept his gaze downward, because the bakunawa wouldn't stop for them. (As a matter of fact, the bakunawa had no idea of it's passengers. If it did, they would be dinner.)

"Oh my god!" A voice cut through the air. "Where am I? What's happening? Who the hell are you?"

Oikawa's heart skipped a beat. The voice froze him for a moment. Slowly, he lifted his gaze and turned around. For the first time, his eyes met with Ushijima's dark globes. A wave of joy washed over the diwata. Finally. He couldn't help but smile widely. A chuckle escaped his mouth.

"You..." he muttered, still dumbfounded. Tears of joy almost swelled in his eyes. Prince Ushijima stared. Face all stiff and serious, waiting for an explanation.

When the bakunawa began to leap upward, did they broke off eye contact. Oikawa merely shouted over his shoulder, "Hang on tight!" as he pulled his gaze downward again. The prince clung to his mysterious companion's shirt, wary, still keeping some distance.

Some island began to sprout here and there. Over the dark waters, these small lands popped up, but none of them was Bungo Isla yet.

"Who are you?" the mortal asked again.

Without taking off his eyes from the ocean, the diwata answered, "The most gorgeous thing in this world."

After a moment's silence, the prince made a comeback. "And what name do you go by, so-called most gorgeous thing in this world creature?"

Oikawa scoffed as loud as possible, but with an air of elegance, curtly retorted, "I'm Oikawa Tooru, last-standing diwata."

"O-oikawa?"

"Wet your pants in fear, huh?" he teased.

It took a while before the mortal answered with, "No. I haven't heard of that strange name. Nice to meet you, Oikawa. I'm Prince Wakatoshi of the Ushijima clan."

Oikawa scowled, a bit frustrated about the zero recognition from the mortal. "C'mon, mortals have lots of myths and legends about the Oikawa diwata clan? Doesn't that ring a bell, Ushiwaka-chan?"  

"No. Not really... And it's Ushijima Wakatoshi."

It sounded unbelievable. Oikawa was a name feared for many centuries by the mortals, and yet this mortal had no idea. It was, as Iwaizumi would've put it, fishy. Impossibly fishy. But before Oikawa could trip into a monologue about the tale of his race, he finally spotted Bungo Isla from afar. 

"Get ready to jump!" Oikawa shouted.

"What?"

"On the count of three, okay?"

"What are we doing at three?"

"One..."

"Hold on—"

"Two..."

"Wait, I don't und—"

"Three!"

Oikawa grabbed hold of Ushijima, pulled him by the wrist, and both of fell off from the black dragon's back. In the free-fall, Oikawa shouted his thanks to Kuroo, which was nothing but an echo of gratitude, drowned with the mortal's scream of fear and uncertainty.

* * *

"Hey! Hey, wake up!"

The words broke out of Ushijima's black screen. He jolted awake, saw his companion, smirking above him. It was a rather gorgeous grin, he had to admit.

"Seriously, you're pretty weak for someone huge."

Ushijima sat up. Grass cushioned his bottom. He put a hand up to his forehead. His head was spinning from the fall. 

A hoot-hoot-hoot noise sliced the air. 

"Stay close to me. I'm not too familiar with this place, so anything could spell out trouble!" Oikawa said, holding a hand up at Ushijima. The prince, a little woozy, managed to bring himself to stand up with the diwata's aid.

"And what can  _you_  do against trouble?"

"O, challenging me, e? I am a diwata! It's the best creature to be, mister."

"But you're quite small. Smaller than I am. And you look dainty, like you can't even hurt a fly. Do you even know how to punch properly?"

Oikawa grabbed him by the shirt's collar and pulled him threateningly close. "Don't piss me off, Ushiwaka-chan. You're the only one I've got. Now, let's stay focused and look for Datu Bokuto. And don't ask too many questions! I'm supposed to be the smarter one here. Don't make me look clueless."

The two walked in silence. Ushijima's boots and Oikawa's bare feet crunched against the grass. The moonlight was bright enough to illuminate the road: a grassy land with an occasional white tree, erect on the field.

"How did we land?" Ushijima asked out of the blue.

"O, I spat out my Azul, then swallowed the Puti— I meant, my stones! Uh, sorry. Damn, it's hard to talk to mortals. Do you know what I'm even saying? See, you're all pretty dumb!"

"Stop acting so high and mighty. I can tell you don't even know where we're going."

Another hooting disrupted them. This shut up the diwata from retorting. He decided to hide his peeve, but there was something about Ushijima. The man had the face of a stoic opponent, one who wouldn't bother a storm of insults. But Oikawa held his tongue. Now wasn't the time to argue.

"Huh, that's a second time," Ushijima commented.

"Great counting skills!" Oikawa's voice, a blatant tone of sarcasm.

"Shh, listen."

The two halted. A flap of feathers. More hooting. The two looked up, but no birds darted the evening sky. 

"Suspicious..." 

Ushijima then cupped his hands over his mouth and hooted back. He hooted and hooted, 'til an owl responded in the distance.

"So, genius, what did the stupid bird say?" Oikawa sharply asked.

"I'm not talking to birds. I'm locating the sound. They come from that direction. And if there are animals there, we can find something, or someone, there."

"Alright...?" Oikawa was skeptical about the plan, but nonetheless, still urged his companion. "Alright, keep hooting, then we'll follow by ear."

And the young prince did. He hooted, they listened, they inched closer to the sound of birds. With each step, their feet slowly engaged in a long race. Soon, they broke out into a race, as if chasing the source of the hooting. Their knees banged against their chests in the height of the run. Hooting and crunching noises, faded with their sudden mirth and laughter. Neck on neck, the two ran straight to a thick forest with rows of dead and leafless trees.

Until the ground shook, knocking down the two over the sharp grass.

"Oikawa! What's happening?"

"I don't know! I can't stand!"

The diwata had fallen, his left arm slammed right into the earth's crack. He tried to stand up, but with the force of the rumbling ground rocked, it was impossible. He tried to shout for help, yet Ushijima couldn't even crawl closer. Again and again, they stumbled on the shaking ground. Yells of helplessness permeated in the chilly night sky. Then a booming voice blared in the night:

"Whoever dares enter my island without my consent shall be exterminated! How dare you have no respect for my island?"

From the cracks of the field, immense white light sprouted. The sky was illuminated with the beams. Oikawa and Ushijima halted, astonished. The ground continued to tremble. Owls suddenly fluttered all about. A cloud of smoke unfurled. Out from the cracks, basked in the light's glory, a shadow slowly emerged from underground.

It was a figure of a man: an average height, well-built body, a red cloth over silvery spiked-up hair, and golden eyes peered out from a youthful face. A sleeveless vest with intricate patterns exposed a tattoo-filled chest. Tattoos swirled all over his well-sculpted body— torso, arms and legs. He wore an open vest with a matching lioncloth draped around his lower half. He had the look of a pintado (a man covered with tattoos), save for his face that remained untouched with ink.  

"Datu Bokuto!" The recognition hit Oikawa as quick as lightning. Just as sudden, the ground ceased rocking.

The emerging datu, conveniently elevated above the two, immediately looked puzzled at the trespassers. He raised a thick brow, and with a softer voice, he asked, "Do I know you?" 

"I... I am Oikawa Tooru, from the diwata tribe, Datu!" Oikawa could only do as much as look up from being stuck. He bowed as deep as he could. "I— we, we were sent by Kuroo-Bakunawa. He says you can be of help! Please, help us catch the Adarna!"

The word 'Adarna' killed the light in Bokuto's eyes. He repeated the word, rolled the it on his tongue, as if he was unfamiliar with it.

"Yes, I do know where the Adarna is. But..." he cleared his throat, and a dramatic pause before the challenging question, "Are you ready?"

"Wait, hold on. What's going on? What's the Adarna? Why are we even here, Oikawa?"

"Oho? And what kind of creature are you, tall one?"

"I'm Prince Wakatoshi of the Ushijima clan. And you are?"

A booming laughter struck the air. Oikawa rolled his eyes in surrender.

"Datu Bokuto, of course! The best war god in all of Bathala's universe, that's who I am!"

"Who's Bathala?"

"The god of all gods, of course! The god of everything! He goes by lots of names, but he's Bathala to us magic folk."

"Magic folk...?"

"Hey, hey, hey, Oikawa, why is your friend dumber than he looks?"

"Datu, he's a non-magic folk."

"Ay! That explains it! Oooooo! Now it makes sense why you want the Adarna. Let me get this straight: he's lost in the magical forest and you need the Adarna to get out, yes?"

"Yes, Datu, as simple as that."

"Oho ho, but not as simple as catching the Adarna, no!"

"What is the Adarna and why do we need it?"

"Datu, Kuroo-Bakunawa had said it can no longer be found in it's mountain, in Piedras Platas. Where is it hiding then?"

"Sadly, it's my fault why the Adarna's some place else. But! Lucky for you, I think it's closer in Blue Forest. Bundok Saya (Mountain of Joy), have you heard of it?"

"Will nobody answer me?"

"You mean the tallest mountain in the forest? The one located in the outskirts?"

"I... I honestly can't remember... Let's all go visit my most trusted adviser. Follow me, you two!"

"Uh, I'm stuck in this hell hole, datu."

With a clap, the ground opened up, and Oikawa was able to free his left arm. 

"Now, shall we go to my most trusted adviser?"

"Will I know what an Adarna is if we go with you?"

The war god clapped his hands in a staccato pattern, summoning a cloud to close around them. He continued with his clapping, until the clouds thickened, then faded to reveal the insides of a nipa hut (bahay kubo). They were in the datu's home.

"Hey, hey, hey, Akaashi! I'm hoooome!"

A door to their left creaked open. A man, dressed in female clothing, came out from the room. He looked up to them with white eyes that bore no irises. 

"Bokuto, not too loud. I'm healing someone. She's already recovering," he said in a gentle voice. "O, I hear we have guests? Two? Who are your friends, love?"

"Aww, I was supposed to introduce them to you! But you always guess it right!" the Datu complained childishly.

"Alright then, love. I'll pretend there aren't guests in our living room."

"You're amazing, Akaashi." He ran to him for a hug, and Akaashi welcomed him in his arms.

"Okay, this is Oikawa, a diwata. And Prince Wakatoshi, from the Ushijima clan!" Bokuto pointed at them as if Akaashi could physically see. "The Prince is mortal," he added in a whisper, as if it were taboo.

"Nice to meet you," Akaashi smiled. "It's a lovely surprise to be visited by a diwata, since you're now a rare specie. So I've heard. And a human? That's great. You know, I am part-mortal, too."

"You are part-mortal? Does that mean... you're a half-breed?" Ushijima was awed, yet still kept a stoic expression.

"True, a half-breed. Kalahating nilalang, as we sometimes call it. And I'm proud to be."

"Damn, right! You're perfect, Akaashi! Who cares about the fight against half-breeds? That protest is dumb!"

"A, but magic folks always think they're better than the rest."

"Well, of course!" Oikawa butted in. "Of course, we think that way, but no, we're not any better. I know that now."

"Wisdom comes with pain. You speak from an irrevocable past, diwata. I sympathize with your pain. But if you are hurt, why are you here for the Adarna?"

"To get the mortal home, Akaashi! Of course, he has to go. This place isn't for him, you know."

Akaashi turned his head towards Ushijima. This shocked the prince, making him step backwards in caution. Then he spoke gently. "I think he could fit."

"Wait, are you prophesizing? You are a babaylan, right?" Oikawa's eyes grew wide.

"One's dark memory needs to be unlocked, to free another one's past."

"What sort of riddle is that?"

"That's all I could tell you two for now. Foretelling the future would bring destruction if you both knew it now. In the right time, you'll come into terms again. And I will come around again, in the whispers of the wind."

Akaashi held out a bracelet made out of bones. He urged the two guests to come close. He slipped them a bracelet for each. 

"This is an agimat, something like a lucky charm. This usually works against dark magic. Always wear it to protect yourselves. Always wear it, and you two shall never part in spirit."

Oikawa and Ushijima looked at each other. Confusion settled in their eyes. More questions swam in their heads, but none of them had the guts to spill out their thoughts. They couldn't even understand what the babaylan was trying to say. But the blind one spoke with a confident voice, they simply trusted him. 

"You'll understand. At the right time." Akaashi smiled. "Now, about the Adarna. Bokuto, lead me to the Kwarto de Bungo (Room of the Skulls)."

* * *

It was a small room with rows and rows of transparent glass cases. Inside, various skulls grinned at them. It looked creepy, but considering that Akaashi was blind, it didn't matter. 

The four split inside the labyrinth of glass cases. Ushijima volunteered to guide the blind babaylan, asking him more questions about the existence of this other world. Oikawa and Bokuto excitedly went around to search for a specific skull.

"There should be one skull here with the label 'Adarna.' I put it here after I was cured. See, Bokuto dear caught the Adarna as a cure for my... horrible sickness. In exchange, I lost my sight. I knew that would happen. Sometimes, I predict my own fate. It was a tough decision to make. But I chose to live each day without seeing the love of my life, than to lose all my days with him." 

"Hey! I think I found it!" Bokuto was at the opposite aisle of the glass cases.

"Good," Akaashi held out his hands. The datu knowingly took the skull out of the case, then located his lover from the other side. Carefully, he placed it on Akaashi's delicate fingers.

The babaylan stayed silent, and they all copied. In a matter minutes, Akaashi explicated, "Bundok Saya. That's the place. And, hmm, that's funny. The Adarna's not on the summit. It's just below the mountain. It'll be an easy catch, perhaps. Your chances in daytime are good. Just remember: don't fall asleep when you hear the song, and avoid it's poop."

"Poop?" Ushijima was surprised by the peculiar order.

"It's poop can turn anything to stone, dummy! Have you not read about the Adarna in books?" 

"Really?" Ushijima raised a brow.

"Ugh, mortals." Oikawa scoffed. 

"Well, well, the sooner you catch the Adarna, the better! No more mortal to bother you!" Bokuto beamed.

"If you're willing to let him go," Akaashi interrupted, smiling knowingly.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's sick but managed to stand up and conquer the fucking rain. TWICE. (YO! IT'S ME.) 
> 
> >Jupiterian- huge (I'm sorry, I know this isn't an English word. I actually made it up and it just slipped into me as a habit ever since. So I'm putting it here to share it. HAHA. I am lame.)  
> >Bungo- skull  
> >Datu- chief  
> >Adarna- a colourful magical bird that changes feathers; magic poop turns things into stone; wonderful voice can cure or lull people to sleep; lives in Mount Tabor in Piedras Platas.  
> > nipa hut- also check: bahay kubo  
> > Pintado- warrior with lots of tattoos (which was a sign of bravery and strength); tattoos also represented their victories from wars and feuds, so the many tattoos, the many the victories.  
> > Babaylan- spiritual leader; usually played by a woman in old Philippine civilizations. Men who wish to participate this career were welcomed, under the condition that they had to wear the traditional clothes of babaylan. Basically, men cross-dressed in order to be recognised as babaylan. That's kind of cool, okay???
> 
> A little clarification on diwata stones. I patterned this 'swallow the stone to get your powers' from Darna, a local Philippine superhero. She's an archetype to Wonder Woman. They sort of do resemble each other. Unlike Darna, who swallows only 1 particular stone to gain all her powers.
> 
> For this fic, I created 4 stones for Oikawa, each representing the element tied to it. They are Azul (water gem), Puti (air gem), Verde (earth gem), and Pula (fire gem). I'm aware that Azul y Verde are Spanish, because even for us Filipinos, we stick to that (although we write it as 'asul at berde'). Puti at Pula are Filipino words, meaning white and red respectively. I might stick to these terms in the future, as I have already established this point. More Spanish and Filipino words might pop up here and there as usual. I hope it's all okay?
> 
>  
> 
> ~~Also, I'm trying to draw the characters, to help y'all visualise, but it's so fucking hard to draw??? I'd commission anyone to do "fan art" for this fan fic, but I can't afford it. HAHA~~


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the last day of the year. I feel bad for an overdue update. I feel worse to update with only a filler chapter, hence the lack of a title. 
> 
> This sucks, I'm so sorry. Hopefully, I'll pick things up again. (It's been a bad semester...)

******Kabanata 6**

 

A burst of laughter erupted from Oikawa. He was on the floor, curled up, laughing, with tears in his eyes. Ushijima had no idea what was funny. He shot a puzzling look at the datu and babaylan, but even they were trying to contain their chuckles.

“How can clouds be ridden if they’re made out of water?” Ushijima was stern, and this made Oikawa shriek with joy.

Now the three of them caught the giggles. Ushijima remained calm despite his confusion. The diwata tried to stand up. Datu Bokuto had to help.

“Alright, alright, I’m sorry. I guess it’s pretty... _different_ from your usual ride, Ushi-baka?”

“What do you mean…?”

“We magic-folks do use clouds as means of transportation.”

“Impossible!”

Despite the giant cloud right before his eyes, he didn’t know how this one could even lift him, let alone the both of them.

Only when Oikawa jumped inside and cried, “C’mon! Just shut up trust me!” did he, finally, stepped aboard.

* * *

The cool wind brushed their faces as they rode through the night. The night was deep with clouds, stars, and moonlight.

 

Oikawa laid his back against the cloud, wisps of fluff oozed all over. He enjoyed driving clouds, it was a very laid-back skill. There was only a round ball to stir directions, on the front bulk of the cloud. Most of the time, this vehicle depended on wind, or the light, but seemingly, it had a mind of its own (similar to auto-pilot, nowadays).  Besides the direction ball, the vehicle was nothing but a huge soft cushion with built-in cooling device inside the cloud itself. It’s only side-effect was the slight dampness at the slight touch.

He squirmed his toes, buried beneath a tuft of cloud. It felt colder than usual. His leafy shirt was very damp now. He looked back to see Prince Ushijima already asleep, curled up in the back wisps of the cloud. Oikawa smiled and yawned. His companion looked peaceful. And not to mention, strangely handsome, even with his mouth ajar. Then a frown fell upon his face.

_Do I really have to give you up... too soon?_

Worried, he looked ahead. In the distance, the forcefield of Blue Forest glowed.  He himself had casted that.

Every nine in the evening, it would slowly envelope the entire forest, blocking out all forms of magic from cursing the habitants inside the forest. It was to keep them safe. Nnothing bothered the creatures of Blue Forest for the next twenty years and counting.

The diwata pushed the direction ball, and the cloud began to slow down. Fatigue was sinking in his bones. It's been a long day. He could barely open his eyes, he could no longer drive.

He knew had to park somewhere, at least near Blue Forest, or Bundok Saya itself, but given his drowsy situation, Oikawa settled the cloud atop a forest. It would eventually lead them to Bundok Saya—if they follow the stream. Then, he slipped beside the sleeping prince.

* * *

He felt cold and wet, and he was slowly slipping away. Ushijima turned to the right side, slowly opened his eyes, then blinked in surprise to meet Oikawa’s face. Quickly, he sat up, tried to rub sleep off his eyes, yet the diwata remained real, and the cloud was just as real, like the purplish sky that was about to dawn.

Sleep crept back to him, tempted him to fall back. Beside that creature, who looked so peaceful and harmless, almost kind in the face, and ridiculously quiet. But for some strange reason, he liked the other Oikawa, the one draped with a whirlwind of insults. Ushijima secretly found that personality elegantly charming, and he was just getting used to it.

The prince loomed closer to the diwata, and pulled his chin down, wondering if that creature would snore. But now, his mouth was a bit open, no snore slipped. Disappointed at the sound of silence, he turned away with a grunt, and fell back into sleep.

Faced at the other side, Oikawa, shamefully expected a kiss, but sighed in relief. He merely pretended to sleep, yet that was a close call. He could’ve been kissed. How thankful he wasn't. A kiss would only wipe the prince's memory of him.

And he didn't want to be forgotten.


	7. Misadventure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's prepare for Tanaka and Nishinoya's appearance as tiyanak babies!
> 
> I owe _Janus Silang_ and _101 Kagila-gilalas na Nilalang_ for this chapter, even if I did play around with some details about the tiyanak, hehe. 
> 
> I made it especially long (and hopefully suspenseful), just in case I won't be back to update soon. Just in case. ~~I really need to start thinking about thesis. Help.~~ Also, Ushijima's other identity was purposefully left unsaid. Just to keep the suspense, haha. Feel free to guess!

**Kabanata 7  
Kwentong Lagalag**

 

“Wait. Listen.”

The forest had a thousand sounds. It was a symphony of hoots, hisses, chirps, buzzes—they melded in one booming orchestra. Nothing out of the ordinary, the diwata thought. Except for the fact that it was a bit dark, like the sun was merely a drawing in the sky.

“Listen to...?” Oikawa put had a hand to his hip, and the other remained outstretched. Light emanated from the tips. It kept the branches out of their faces. He had swallowed the Verde (the green gem), to control nature, to help clear the path. The forest was quite thick, and looking up at the yonder Bundok Saya… it was even greener.

“I thought I heard... crying.” Ushijima threw a glance behind his shoulder. He thought he saw something right behind them.

Oikawa scoffed, rolled his eyes and muttered, “Impossible. There’s no one else in here.”

They advanced slowly, Oikawa with both arms carefully parting their way through, and Ushijima, who kept looking back. Frankly, he could still feel the pair of watchful eyes, looming behind them. As if glued to his neck. It was hard to ignore, especially when his ears picked up something, besides their breathing and the crunching noises of their feet.

Something began to sob. A quiet sob, like a whimpering child. Afraid. The crying would increase. He heard it all around him. Permeating. Resonating. He called out to Oikawa, reaching out his sleeve to stop.

_Rip!_

“Damn it! I told you we’re all alone!”

Oikawa looked at his sleeve, then glared at Ushijima. Tsk-tsking, he stopped casting the spell to the trees.  

With a wave from his hands, his clothes fell apart. Light beamed from the diwata. Two colourful strips of cloth—also known as _malong_ — suddenly materialised from the light. It wrapped around his torso, forming an X over his chest. White cloth wound around his bare chest, but barely reached down his stomach, so his navel remained exposed. A belt appeared, with three buckles, which looked more like a golden round clips. Even the trousers changed, shedding from green to light blue. It fell above his knees, frayed at the edges.

The diwata didn’t stop there. Without further ado, he raised a finger at the mortal. Bright light began to emanate from Ushijima.

He appeared to be cloaked in sunlight. Two cloths also appeared: one violet, with frayed edges, and a long flowing black cloth. The violet wound itself on his entire right side, while the black slung over his left shoulder. A clip, suspiciously shaped like a half coconut, sat atop his shoulder, making a short puff sleeve on his left. His trousers, no longer short and puffy, but were long and rather loose. Ushijima also noticed he had a new belt, strangely looking like a snake coiled around his waist. Then, light diminished.

“Here,” Oikawa shoved something to his hands. A long white band. “You can use it as a weapon, but for now, tie it around your head, or your arm, whatever. Just in case.

“Just in case of...?”

Rolling his eyes, he sputtered, “Just in case we aren’t alone.”

* * *

_Psst!_

Ushijima couldn’t tell if it was real or not. He kept on seeing someone—or something—as they walked through the forest. Like a shadow with no face, a short black figure, within the green folds. Caution bit him, the way the mosquitos feasted on their sweaty flesh.

_Psst!_

There was no wind, but the trees and leaves swayed and bowed at them. Oikawa was slightly speeding, although it wasn’t a trouble to catch up with the diwata. He wanted to tell about the invisible eyes. It still bore on him. But, the diwata was still convinced that they were alone.

_Psst!_

Oikawa felt like he was carrying boulders. His arms began to grow tired. The path looked endless. The mountain still seemed so far away. Had they passed that funny looking tree, the one with purple sap all over it’s trunk? Things were suspiciously odd. As if they weren't moving at all.

_Psst!_

“Was that you?” Oikawa asked.

_Psst!_

“You hear it, too?”

_Psst!_

“Yeah, why are you calling me?”

“What? No, I’m not. I thought you could hear the psst-psst. And the crying.”

_Psst!_

Oikawa dropped his heavy arms and tucked a tuft of brown hair behind his pointy ears. Nothing unusual registered in his senses. But when he turned around, a small figure smirked from the trees, just behind Ushijima…

“Shit. Tiyanak.”

His eyes nearly popped out. He grabbed Ushijima by the wrist. Without a word, they began to run. But the psst-psst noises continued to follow them.

* * *

They were tricked before he could counter the black magic. Bewitched, even before he realised it. They both fell into the trap. It was too late now. The forest became an endless trail. It was pointless to run, but even more pointless to be caught by tiyanak. Despite their small deformed baby figure, they were ruthless.

Tiyanak creatures had been one of the earth's first fiends. Elders said, they were the souls of the unborn, fetuses lost due to abortion or miscarriage. They had the ability to shape-shift into a baby or a child. Despite that, their abilities to run fast and leap high were exceptional. However, they could barely see, almost close to being blind. The proper functioning senses were the sense of smell and hearing.

Stories had always told about how a strolling couple would find them, crying all alone in a forest. Usually, the couples were childless by chance. They could smell that scent, the strong aroma of love, affection, mixed with a little loss and emptiness from something. Eventually, the couple would adopt the tiyanak as their child. But later on, when the tiyanak had reached it’s limit of growth, it would kill the parents who nursed it. Human hearts was what it desired the most.

It was a rare case that they simply went out to have fun. Unless they were hungry. Unfortunately, the diwata and the mortal had stepped into their cradle of foul play. And they were famished.

Hot air now sliced through their perspiring bodies as they ran. Oikawa tried to dig up an answer on how to fight back. Alas, he couldn’t remember any counter-attacks for the tiyanak. When he was a young diwata, he was always saved by an elder diwata from their dark magic. Surely, there was was a tip given to him, but he had to recall. Think. Dig deep. And run faster.

Meanwhile, Ushijima grew dizzier and dizzier. His legs started to shake, started to surrender. Oikawa’s hand still insisted, pulled, dragged. It was do or die. He didn’t even know why they were running, but he quickly read Oikawa’s pale face. Fear was clearly plastered all over it.

He tried to ask, why they had to run, but he couldn’t even catch his breath to blurt out a single word. They ran nonstop, yet it felt like they were stuck on a spot. Fatigue clung to his legs now. Lungs, cramped with few shots of air. His knees quivered, folded, crashed on the grass. Oikawa, hand wrung around Ushijima’s wrist, was abruptly held back. He, too, crashed down, toppled right on top of the mortal.

Silence.

They looked around in silence. Nothing stirred for a while. No tiyanak behind them. No sounds in the air, not even those deceiving cries.

Oikawa sat up on the mortal’s back, hands laid on his shoulders, trying to steady himself. He was awfully woozy. It was when he noticed Ushijima’s birthmark: there on the left shoulder, almost close to his neck, like a purple bruise, shaped like some large bird with deformed feathers.

Curiosity bit him. And he made the mistake of touching it.

* * *

“AAAAAAAAAA!!! NISHINOYAAAAA!!!”

“Quit whining, Tanaka! I’m trying to track down their scents! They can’t be too far...”

“Unless...”

“Let’s not assume they’ve escaped our spell yet, Ryu...”

“Argh, they smelled so good! I bet their hearts will be a feast!”

“They should! Did you smell their magic essences? Today must be our lucky day.”

“Exactly! It’s not everyday, a couple of magic folks wander in here. Good job on the illusory spell, Noya-san!”

“Of course, it’s my specialty! We tiyanak may have awful eye sight, but illusions are our reality!”

“But... they do smell different? Don’t you think so, Noya-san?”

“You smelled that, too, Ryu?”

“Their emotions are... a bit... weak. The affection is raw. Like a budding flower.”

“But, they would have to do. I’m hungry.”

“Right. Me, too.”

* * *

The moment the tiyanak lost their scent was the accidental discovery of Ushijima’s other form.

At the touch of the birthmark, he morphed into his inner beast. His body, now bigger and taller, ripped off his clothes into shreds. Hair instantly covered his legs, and his feet turned into hooves. A tail sprouted.

His face stretched into a snout. Pointy ears moved at the top of his head. Red eyes glared. A longer neck, covered with dark brown mane, was where Oikawa clutched on to him.

The beast ran as fast as lightning. It seemed unaware of Oikawa, who wound his legs on Ushijima’s well-built torso, and grasped like a tarsier on a bamboo stick. Ushijima’s mind faltered, unable to control himself completely. His beast instincts pulled him to run, and his new body simply dashed away.

As they accelerated, the both of them saw it. A flicker of hope. They realised the forest was changing.

The colour. It was getting lighter. Fainter. Although everything was blurry, the colour kept shifting, from darker hues to lighter ones. It wasn’t merely light, but sunlight. It began to seep through.

An epiphany: the tiyanak spell was weakening.

* * *

“Noya-san! I can only smell one of them now!”

“No! They couldn’t have found out the exit too soon!”

“Can you pick up anything else?”

“A bunch of animals, tree spirits, but only that one creature... Hmm... diwata blood...”

“Come on, let’s run and track that one down! Before he escapes!”

* * *

It was hard to think what had weakened the tiyanak’s spell. Had it been broken all this time? Did it come around when Ushijima transformed? As the running beast accelerated, Oikawa rammed his brains for an answer.

It was hard to think when astonishment and disappointment kept creeping in him. More than astonished, he was repulsed. But more than repulsed, he was enraged. Surely, he knew that his companion was no ordinary mortal from the start, but he never expected _this_. This creature was the least he expected. He tried not to be mad or miserable. He tried to think up of solutions.

The spell had them in a false world. This explained why the surroundings were darker than usual. At a certain point, sunlight shed into the false world, coming from the real forest. If they could jump into the light, they would escape the tiyanak. But as long as they were in the dark, they could be tracked.

“Ushiwaka! Hey, Ushiwaka!”

Ushijima didn’t hear him clearly. He, too, was trapped in between two states: the beast in him and the prince everyone knew from the outside. Like the sunlight and the darkness, the beast and the mortal battled in his mind, striving for dominance. It was a terrible frenzy, for the beast was leading on. It was harder to communicate.

Oikawa traced back: he saw the tiyanak right behind Ushijima, they ran, until Ushijima fell, and he fell, that’s when he touched the birthmark, the transformation happened, he was a beast, ripped his clothes, and they sped off. That was the part where he noticed the wavering magic.

“Stop!” Oikawa shouted, finally remembering. It was simple—how stupid of him to forget! All there was to do, was to revert his clothes, or destroy it. The tiyanak may be unable to see, but their clothes carried out a part of their scents, which they depended on. If they were able to free themselves of clothes, the tiyanak could be lured with that scent—for a while. It was suspenseful and tricky. Oikawa knew the tiyanak were probably close by, or leaping right behind them.

They needed good timing. After all, to deceive the tiyanak—the masters of deception? It sounded foolish.

But it was possible.

The surroundings were still changing from dark to light and vice versa. Oikawa closed his eyes, tried to ignore the panicking rhythmic beats of his heart. He had to focus and outsmart the devilish creatures. They had to. Luckily, in his beast mode, Ushijima was pretty fast. At this pace, they stood a had chance to escape.

Light broke out of the diwata’s body. His garments unceremoniously fell off. Something crashed—the phial of Luha ng Sirena! He raised a finger, summoned a large leaf to quickly scoop the remaining liquid. The leaf pack flew right to him.

With both arms on Ushijima’s neck, he kicked him at the side. The beast automatically darted, sprinted, stormed right through the shifting shadows and light. His hooves thundered, vibrating loudly thtoughout the forest. The waves and the quake vibrated, transmitting to Tanaka and Nishinoya to halt leaping in mid-air, as they cringe at the earsplitting noise.

The beast and the diwata sprang off. The angry cries of the tiyanak grew fainter and fainter, while the sky changed, brighter and brighter. The real world greeted them.

* * *

Luha ng Sirena was the best accident that halted the running beast.

Oikawa had a phial of it, but was accidentally disposed when he removed his garments. Fortunately, he had magicked a leaf to catch what he could save. Just before the two of them ripped out of the tiyanak’s trap, it floated in front of him.

However, when it began to leak—the weak leaf grew damp easily—a few drops dived on Ushijima’s body. The drops sent the beast morphing back into his human form. The naked prince collapsed, and the diwata, also clotheless, fell right beside him.

Both of them panted heavily. Not a word exchanged. They were dead tired, even if Ushijima had no full idea about what exactly happened. He wanted to ask, but Oikawa’s nakedness flustered him, he couldn’t even stutter.

“It’s cold,” was all the diwata said in between puffs of inhales and exhales. “I hate you,” he managed to mumble. “How... how could you... You never... told me...”

“About what?”

“Your... other form?”

“What?”

He turned to face him, held him by the jaw. “You were... You’re more than human. Prince Wakatoshi Ushijima.”

“Huh. Funny. For a second... I thought your eyes glowed. When you said my name.”

“What?”

“No wonder... you don’t say it often.” He turned to face him, scooted a bit closer.

“Get away from me.” he seethed and turned the other way. Ushijima wound his arm around him anyway. “How can you even tell? It’s getting dark now.”

“Cold, isn’t it?” he asked, deliberately changing the topic. The prince placed his head on the space between the diwata’s neck and shoulder. The later nodded in response. But immediately jerked when something wet pressed on the back of his shoulder.

“Did you just... did you just kiss me? On my shoulder?”

He glared, but Ushijima’s eyes looked back at him tenderly.

“May I?”

Oikawa frowned, but didn’t protest. Another kiss fell on his shoulder. He made a trail going to his neck. It went up to his ear. The diwata tried to contain the moans that tempted to escape. Their bodies rubbed closer. Warmer. Then those lips slowly went on his eye, slowly to his forehead... his nose... his cheek... A hand flew to his lips before the prince could peck.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered, and kissed the back of his hand instead. “My actions were indecent. Please forgive me, Oikawa.”

“N-no...” his voice cracked. “ _I’m_ sorry.”

“Shh, shh, what’s the matter? You don’t have to cry.”

“I’m not crying, bastard!” His fists hit the prince’s side, but it was half-heartedly done. The sadness bubbled up and tears leaked down his eyes.

Ushijima wiped them away. He stroked his eyelids down and whispered, “You must be really tired. I’m sorry. Just get some rest. I’ll be here, and I promise nothing bad will happen.”

“No, it’s just that—”

Oikawa quickly sat up. Eyes were as round as the emerging moon. Ushijima had a feeling it was bad. Those were the same eyes when he suddenly grabbed him and sprinted away earlier that day.

“Oh no... Not another creature!”

Oikawa quick-spelled back their clothes, grabbed Ushijima, and in helter-skelter, ran again. He was sure he heard it right: a pair of wings. Not just a pair, but three pairs of fluttering mananaggal that could possibly be looming close.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah... I kinda did some fan art of their transformations, I guess? I'm not a super good artist tho, huhubels. (It's in my Tumblr: http://waltangina.tumblr.com/post/136958200807/shit-im-so-nervous-posting-my-art-wtf-i-hate )

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, you read it. Congratulations! And thank you very much. Salamat!
> 
> "Silahis" is a Filipino word meaning "rays of the sun" or "sunlight." In swardspeak/ gay linggo/ bekimon, this also means "bisexual." Some people associate it with being gay as related words to bakla/ bading/ beki, and that's okay, too. So yeah, the title is a play of words! Chose your pick.
> 
> Originally, I would have written this in Filipino, but IRONICALLY, FILIPINOS DO NOT READ IN FILIPINO. THEY READ IN ENGLISH. WTF. (BUT WHO AM I TO JUDGE. IT'S NOT MY FAULT THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO READ IN THEIR SUPPOSED MOTHER TONGUE. I WENT TO THIS PHASE, TOO, BUT I OVERCAME IT NOW. I WONDER WHY ARE OTHERS NOT EVEN TRYING TO GET BETTER IN FILIPINO. C'MON. BAKIT.) 
> 
> Next time, I will risk writing a fic in Filipino _for Haikyuu!!_ just because I can. 
> 
> (Tags, edits, and the rating are subject to change. This fic may also be taken down-due to insecurities of the writer's skill, without further notice.)
> 
> Hey, hey, hey! I found this, and it might be very helpful, if you're interested in Philippine mythology: https://sites.google.com/site/philmyths/encyclopedia  
> It's just a part of Philippine mythology, specifically gods and goddesses. There are creatures that aren't here tho. Anyways, I usually draw out characterization from the canon description, but sometimes I tweak and reinvent, just to come up with something new, or with a new flavour.


End file.
